


Like a Snowball to the Face

by NianaiBell



Series: #ourtwoweeksofpositivity [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: #ourtwoweeksofpositivity, Confused Lance (Voltron), Getting to Know Each Other, Keith getting much needed time to think things through., M/M, Pre-Relationship, Revelations and realizations, Teenage Dorks, i just want these boys to be happy, klance, teasing lance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-13
Updated: 2018-08-13
Packaged: 2019-06-27 02:07:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15675861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NianaiBell/pseuds/NianaiBell
Summary: Day 1: Stealing GlancesDowntime on the castle is a welcomed time for all the paladins and a quiet moment gives Keith time to reflect on things. Lance is confused but happy.





	Like a Snowball to the Face

**Author's Note:**

> Bluberri_pomchi on IG has a wonderful idea started for the current chaos in the VLD fandom. And since I don't art as much I wanted to participate with this little bit. Look for the tags #ourtwoweeksofpositivity to see the wonderful stuff everyone is creating.
> 
>  
> 
> Also I realize I cannot write short things to save my life

Keith was confused. And he found the source of his confusion had once again fallen to one particular paladin. The same paladin that lately seemed to be the source of nearly _all_ of the confusing experiences for Keith. One paladin by the name of Lance McClain.

Everything had being going fine. It had been going better than expected if he was being truly honest.

Over the last few months Lance had been slowly growing past his fervent insistence that they were rivals. He had stopped acting like every maneuver, every mission, every interaction together was some kind of competition to prove that he was better than Keith.

To be fair Keith knew he had never been completely faultless in this; showing off whenever Lance issued him a challenge, always rising to Lance’s taunts with harsh words pulled from his throat before he could think and taking easy jabs at the sharpshooter. Lance just brought his own gravitational pull to everything and it was infuriating and impossible to not get caught up in his orbit. Keith was no exception to the rule here.

But then there was the shift. The challenges became playful, the words teasing rather than taunts, the strain between them became easy comradery. The whole team noticed, all letting out quiet, long held breaths of relief. Even with the change of dynamics he could feel the sparks when they were together. There were still moments of excited challenges falling from Lance’s over excited lips, supportive exclamations after Keith had accomplished even something small, high fives and fist bumps. Just because that was just who Lance was; a ball of bright burning energy which Keith couldn’t help get caught up in.

The change in their dynamics struck Keith particularly hard one day as the two sat together on the castle’s equivalent to a living room. Like a face full of snowball, it left him speechless and stopped him cold in his tracks. Keith had been taking a ‘suggested’ break from training, instead choosing to sit and watch space pass them by, not focused on anything in particular when the automatic doors had let out a swoosh announcing a new occupant. Keith glanced back to see Lance, already emerged in figuring out a new alien puzzle Coran had given him at breakfast.

When Lance caught Keith looking at him, he smirked and gave a simple “Sup Mullet?” Rolling his eyes Keith turned back to the vast emptiness of space, scooting over so Lance and his ridiculous legs had room to sit. Lance muttered his thanks, taking up residence beside him easily enough before the two slipped into easy silence, each preoccupied by their own thoughts. Occasionally Keith would glance over at Lance’s progress, which if he was being honest, was minimal. So far he hadn’t managed to do much else besides pinch his fingers in it and probably teach the puzzle a few choice words.

Eventually the stillness in the room had caught Keith’s attention, the calmness still relatively new to him. After all this was Lance. The same Lance who several months ago would’ve turned the other way at discovering Keith there. But this Lance had his attention honned in on the strange sphere, poking and prodding at the blinking lights, only occasionally offering up commentary on the task or asking Keith a question that made no logical sense to Keith but seemed enough important to the other.

Glancing over at the taller boy, Keith watched him for a minute, anxious that the tentative peace would be broken by the slightest movement. Lance remained unfazed, tapping away and occasionally letting out a whoop of triumph.

Deeming he was safe to observe now Keith watched the way his fingers played with the sphere, long digits smoothly manipulating the game with purposeful intent. Keith remembered a time when he had grabbed Lance’s hand in his for support, how even after Lance had been on the verge of passing out his grip was strong and warm. It was a fond memory for him, no matter how much Lance denied it’s actual happening. Trailing upwards, Keith surveyed the length of Lance’s arms, bigger now than they had been even a few months ago from training and piloting the lions, Keith supposed. He noted the easy flex of muscles and how smoothly they lead up to Lance’s neck and shoulders. Broader now than the young lanky Cuban boy who had first stumbled into the his attempted rescue of Shiro. Briefly Keith noted how even at rest his shoulders seemed to hold so much, tension easy enough to read there from the copious amount of practice Keith had from watching Lance. He felt his face warm slightly at the thought, surprised himself at how much he had been aware of Lance.

Finally his eyes moved up to Lance’s face, who was still thankfully looking down at the puzzle between his hands. His shoulders relaxed from tension he didn’t know he’d still been holding before sweeping across the sharp lines of Lance’s face. Keith couldn’t tell you what half of the moisturizers and facemasks did for skin care but he could recognize that the other boy’s skin did look softer than he would’ve imagine for them being adrift in space for so long without access to anything resembling Earth skincare. Even with the upkeep he noted that the war against the Galra had laid it’s claim to the boy. Marring the soft skin were dark lines at the edges of his eyes. Even as lax as the past few days had been Keith knew Lance had been putting stressor after stresor on his shoulders and by the looks of it the boy wasn’t getting much sleep to counteract it. Feeling partially responsible for not helping somehow (could he have spent more time talking to Lance? Helped him on his training drills? Not challenged him to race with their Lions?) Keith began chewing at his lip and eyes wandering back to the dark void outside the window.

He pondered over what he should do now. Keith had told Lance once that he was there if he wanted to talk but he hadn’t ever really followed through on that, should he now? But what if some part of Lance still felt like Keith would be testing his ability to handle something on his own which could lead in a fight which really not be helpful right now-

“Space getting to your head Red?”

Keith snapped out of his own head, eyes swinging back to Lance. Lance who sat there with a playful grin and a finished puzzle in his hands.

“What? No way. I’m just...thinking” Keith finished gruffly trying not to let any of the current plethora emotions in his brain leak into his tone.

Lance for his part looked thoroughly unconvinced, eyebrows raised and his mouth resembling a flat line. Already on edge from his unexpected observance the look somehow irritated Keith, his shoulders tensing again and a frown springing to his lips. Great, two sentences and he was already ready to fight. Good progress Keith.

No sooner could Keith retort than Lance was shaking his head, eyes closing as a slight smirk set into place.

“Geez Keith, didn’t realize you were picking up a new hobby.” Keith snorted, causing Lance to crack open an eye. Seeing his chance, Lance started up again.

“Besides, I had to ask cause you’ve been staring at me for like 10 minutes straight.”

Keith felt his face heat up at being caught, fist inadvertently clenching and fingers rubbing over his knuckles anxiously. Lace’s expression soften, doing weird and not totally hated things to Keith’s stomach. Nodding towards his gloved hands, Lance began again. “And you’ve been doing that finger thing that you do when you’re anxious. You sure you’re okay?”

That’s when the second revelation hit Keith. Nothing had physically changed between them but every interaction had. That’s when it hit him that they really had left rivalries behind, instead beginning to notice and remember details about one another, care about how the other was. Simple things by all means but a true shift of their relationship. He and Lance worrying about one another, caring about one another in a way that was unfamiliar but natural. His brain immediately supplied the word “partners” and he smiled at how right the word felt. He knew he and Lance were changing into something more trusting and soft. Something that left his throat dry and his chest warm. And it was so completely unexpected that surprise of it made him laugh.

Lance’s brows furrowed, an innocent tug pulling his lips down, sputtering out. “Wait what did I do? Keith buddy? Are you dying?”

And Keith could do nothing more than smile at the strange boy in front of him, admiring how much they’d grown and how much he had slipped into being his support system in Keith’s life.

Whatever Lance saw there had a blush crawling up his face before he shoved the completed sphere into Keith’s lap, turning so he could scowl into the dark abyss of space just as Keith had done.

Keith played absently with the puzzle in his lap, still warm from the time spent in Lance’s grasp. He didn’t miss the occasional side glance Lance would send his way and the subsequent blush whenever he was caught.


End file.
